Facia reflector assembly

ABSTRACT

The assembly includes a reflector having a decorative front surface and a rear surface, a first mounting member on the rear of the reflector, a second mounting member adapted to be attached to a lighting fixture, and a releasable connecting assembly on both mounting members for interconnection therebetween so as to mount the reflector in removable relationship in front of the lighting fixture.

United States Patent 2,4 ss,o12 11/1949 Guth Inventor Manuel C. Johnson Chicago, Ill. Appl. No. 827,238 Filed May 23, 1969 Patented Jan. 4, 1972 Assignee Forum Incorporated Chicago, Ill.

FACIA REFLECTOR ASSEMBLY 7 Claims, 7 Drawing Figs.

US. Cl 240/103 B, 2'40/51.ll R, 240/108 A, 2401128 Int. Cl F21v 7/12,

F2lv 1/04, F2lv 17/06 Field of Search 240/25, 27,

40, 51.11, 54, 92, 93,l03105, 108-110, 2 B, 2 BV, 128; 350/288, 293; 248/2205, 233, 224

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,566,845 9/195 1 Levaur 240/5 1 .1 1

2,986,627 5/1961 Marriett 240/2 3,118,620 l/1964 Bucek 240/51.l1

1,840,138 1/1932 Swallow 248/224 3,477,677 1 l/ 1969 Hindley 248/223 X FOREIGN PATENTS 620,853 5/1961 Italy 240/51.11

Primary Examiner-Richard C. Queisser Assistant ExaminerC. E. Snee, III Att0mey--Prangley, Clayton, Mullin & Vogel ABSTRACT: The assembly includes: a reflector having a decorative front surface and a rear surface, a first mounting member on the rear of the reflector, a second mounting member adapted to be attached to a lighting fixture, and a releasable connecting assembly on both mounting members for interconnection therebetween so as to mount the reflector in removable relationship in front of the lighting fixture.

PATENIEUJAN 4mg SHEET 1 BF 2 INVENTOR MANUEL c. JOHNSON ATT RNEYS FACIA REFLECTOR ASSEMBLY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION It is sometimes desirable to mount a facia (Throughout the specification, reference is made to facia to describe a reflector having a decorative appearance.) having a decorative appearance in front of a lighting fixture so as to light the area with a minimum amount of glare, yet create interesting lighting effects. In the past, such a facia was mounted directly on the lighting fixture with screws or the like to render it somewhat difficult and time consuming to remove when the bulb or lamp needed replacement.

It is therefore an important object of this invention to provide a mounting assembly for removably mounting a facia in front of a lighting fixture.

A further object of this invention is connection with the foregoing object is to insure a secure connection between the facia and the lighting fixture, yet permit ready removal of the facia without the use of tools. In relation to said object, the brackets are of the snap-on type.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a mounting assembly which is completely versatile, that is, it can be used to attach either of the ends of the facia or any point therebetween to the associated lighting fixture.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a mounting assembly for mounting a facia on a lighting fixture, the connections between the various elements being concealed from view.

Yet another object is to afford mounting assemblies which can be mounted at spaced intervals to insure straight alignment of the facia when the same are used in continuous runs.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, arrangement and a combination of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and particularly pointed out in the appended claims; it being under stood that various changes in the form, proportion, size and minor details of the structure may be made without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS For the purpose of facilitating an understanding of my invention, I have illustrated in the accompanying drawings a preferred embodiment thereof, from an inspection of which, when considered in connection with the following description, my invention, its mode of construction, assembly and operation, and many of its advantages should be readily understood and appreciated.

Referring to the drawings in which the same characters of reference are employed to indicate corresponding or similar parts throughout the several figures of the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a decorative facia reflector assembly constructed in accordance with the features of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view on an enlarged scale of the mounting assembly used to mount the facia in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the portion of the mounting assembly that is attached to the lighting fixture;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the mounting assembly in a disassembled condition;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged scale front elevational view of the mounting assembly in an assembled condition;

FIG. 6 is a view in vertical section of mounting assembly of FIG. 6 taken along the plane of lines 6-6 in FIG. 5 of the drawings; and

FIG. 7 is a view in vertical section of the mounting assembly taken along the lines 77 of FIG. 6.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIG. 1 thereof, there is shown a decorative reflector assembly 10 including a facia 15 having a decorative front arcuate surface 16 and a rear surface 17. Although not shown, there is provided a lighting fixture preferably of the conventional fluorescent type, mounted on a wall. There is further provided a pair of mounting assemblies 20, as will be described in more detail hereinafter, for mounting the facia 15 in position in front of the lighting fixture. In the embodiment shown, the facia 15 is elongated and concavely curved in lateral cross section when viewed toward the decorative front surface 16, the facia 15 having a ski-slope-shaped configuration. It is to be understood, that the facia can have a variety of different shapes and configurations, such as, for example, reversing the facia 15 so that the more horizontal portion is located on top. The facia 15 may be of any desired length, usually slightly longer than the fluorescent fixture to which it is to be attached. Preferably, the facia 15 is formed of extruded aluminum or molded plywood. The rear surface 17 of the facia 15 is finished with a coating that will reflect a large percentage of the light against the wall to attain the best lighting effects. In certain cases when the facia 15 is rather long, it is preferable that one or more intermediate mounting assemblies be provided in addition to the two mounting assemblies on the outer ends of the lighting fixture. A plurality of facias may be mounted in continuous runs by providing mounting assemblies at spaced intervals.

Referring now to FIGS. 2 through 7., the details of construction of one of the mounting assemblies 20 will be described. The mounting assembly 20 includes a. first mounting member 21 having an elongated portion 22 which has a curvature to correspond to the curvature of the facia 15. The portion 22 in turn carries a pair of depending side flanges 23. Formed in the portion 22 are openings 24 through which may be passed fastening means such as screws or the like, to mount the mounting member 21 on the rear surface 17 of the facia 15. If, for example, the mounting assembly 20 depicted in F165. 2 through 7 is to mount the midpoint of the facia 15 to the lighting fixture, then the mounting member 21 would be attached to the midpoint of the rear surface 17 of the facia 15.

The mounting assembly 20 further comprises a pair of laterally aligned mounting prongs 25 respectively on either side of the portion 22 forming a continuation of the respective flanges 23, the mounting prongs 25 being located centrally along the extent of the mounting member 21. EAch of the mounting prongs 25 includes a first finger 26 extending rearwardly from the portion 22 and a second finger 27 on the rear of the first finger 26 and disposed substantially normal thereto. There is further provided a metal strip 28 secured to the rear of the curved portion 22 by means of a rivet 29, the strip 28 having a width approximately equal to the width of the curved portion 22. The strip 28 is preferably made of spring steel, and biased away from the portion 22 and toward the first fingers 26 of the prongs 25. The strip 28 carries an abutment 30 (see FIG. 6 particularly) directed toward the curved portion 22 and spaced form the finger 26. The abutment 30 in turn carries a shoulder 31 which in the release condition of the strip 28 bears against the fingers 26.

There is also provided a pair of stabilizing prongs 32 respec tively on the sides of the curved portion 22 near one end thereof. Each of the stabilizing prongs 32 includes a first finger 33 extending rearwardly from the curved portion 22 and a second finger 34 on the rear of the finger 33 and disposed substantially normal thereto. The fingers 34 of the stabilizing prongs 32 and the fingers 27 of the mounting prongs 25 extend in the same direction.

The mounting assembly 20 further includes a bracket 40 having a forwardly directed plate 41. There is provided a pair of U-shaped connectors 42 welded to opposite sides of the plate 41, and each having an upper flange 43 and a lower flange 44. Each of the flanges has a slot 45 therein, the flanges 43 and the slots 45 of one of the connectors 42 being used to attach the mounting assembly 20 to the adjacent end of a lighting fixture. The connector 42 on the other side of the plate 41 is used to connect the mounting assembly 20 to the adjacent end of another lighting fixture. In other words, the mounting assembly shown in FIGS. 2 through 7 is particularly adaptable to interconnect two adjacent lighting fixtures and to support the facia 15 disposed in front of both lighting fixtures. The plate 41 carries at the front thereof a second mounting member 50 which includes a U-shaped central portion 51 conforming to the curvature of the facia 15 and the other mounting member 21. The central portion 51 carries a pair of outwardly directed wings 53, also conforming to the curvature of the facia 15. Each wing 53 has therein a slot 54 near the lower end and a slot 55 near the upper end. The mounting member 50 is connected to the bracket 40 by welding fingers 52 struck from the portion 51 to the side of the plate 41.

After the bracket 40 has been attached to the adjacent lighting fixtures, and after the mounting member 21 has been secured to the rear surface 17 of the facia 15, all as described above, the facia 15 may be mounted. This is accomplished by aligning the mounting prong 25 on one side of the curved portion 22 with the slot 54 in the corresponding one of the wings 53. The stabilizing prong 40 on the same side of the curved portion 22 is aligned with the slot 55 in the same wing 53. The user then pushes against the facia 15 to cause the metal clip strip 28 to bear against the adjacent portion of the wing 53 to cause the strip 28 resiliently to deflect toward the curved portion 22. This causes the forward edge 27a of the finger 27 to clear the rear surface of the wing 53. Simultaneously the stabilizing prong is positioned in the slot 55, uninhibited. The user then slides the facia l upwardly and rearwardly so that the fingers 27 and 34 move against the rear of the wing 53 until the abutment 30 clears the upper end 53a of the wing 53 and snaps back toward the fingers 27, thus to latch together the mounting members. In this condition, retrograde motion of the mounting member 21 is precluded by virtue of a portion of the wing 53 being located between the abutment 30 and the finger 26. Also movement of the mounting member 21 in a direction toward and away from the mounting member 50 is precluded by one of the associated flanges 23 engaging the front surface of the wing 53, and the finger 27 engaging the rear surface thereof. The shoulder 31 prevents the strip 28 from being moved too far from the portion 22 to impair its resiliency. In the disassembled condition of the mounting assembly 20, the shoulder 31 engages the fingers 27, and in the assembled condition, the shoulder 31 engages the associated wing 53.

In other words, attachment of the facia in front of the lighting fixture is accomplished by merely aligning the mounting prongs with their associated slot and thus pushing back and upwardly to securely attach the facia in place.

To remove the facia, the user uses his finger to flex the metal strip 28 toward the curved portion 22 so that the abutment 30 is no longer in front of the wing 53. While so held, the facia is moved downwardly and outwardly until the prongs 25 and 40 are aligned with their associated slots 54 and 55. The user then pulls the facia 15 away so that the prongs are withdrawn from their associated slots.

It is to be understood that although the drawings show the mounting assembly positioned with the fingers 33 and 26 directed upwardly, the mounting assembly 20 may be reversed so that those fingers are directed downwardly if desired.

If the mounting assembly 20 is to be used adjacent to one end of the associated lighting fixture, one of the U-shaped connectors 42 would be unnecessary and need not be provided. The prongs and 32 on the left hand (as viewed in FIG. 7) side of the mounting member 21 are used in association with the slots 54 and 55 on the wing 53 on the right-hand (as viewed in FIG. 7) side of the central portion 51. This is the preferable mode of connection if the left-hand (as viewed in FIG. 1) end of the facia 15 is to be attached to the left-hand end of the lighting fixture. If the mounting assembly 20 is to be used on the right-hand (as viewed in FIG. 1) end, the prongs 25 and 32 on the right hand (as viewed in FIG. 7) side of the mounting member 21 are used in conjunction with the slots 54 and 55 on the wing 53 on the left-hand (as viewed in FIG. 7)

side of the central portion 51. Accordingly, by providing two sets of slots on the mounting member 50 and two sets of prongs on the mounting member 21, the mounting assembly 20 is completely versatile and can be used to mount either end of the facia to the lighting fixture. If the mounting assembly 20 is provided with the both connectors 42 to join two lighting fixtures, then either wing 53 can be used with the associated set of prongs 25 and 32.

From the above description and drawings, it should be apparent that what has been provided is a mounting assembly that permits ready and simple attachment and detachment of a facia to its associated lighting fixture yet concealing the connections.

It is believed that the invention, its mode of construction and assembly, and many of its advantages should be readily understood from the foregoing without further description, and it should also be manifest that while a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described for illustrative purposes, structural details are nevertheless capable of wide variation within the purview of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An assembly for mounting a reflector in front of a lighting fixture and comprising a first flange being adapted for attachment adjacent to the lighting fixture, said first flange having near one end thereof a slot, a mounting member for attachment to the reflector on the rear surface thereof and including a rearwardly directed second flange and a rearwardly directed first finger and a second finger on the rear of said first finger and directed substantially normal thereto, the transverse distance between said second flange and said second finger being slightly greater than the thickness of said first flange, said second finger having a length slightly less than the length of said slot so as to be insertable therein and then movable toward said one end of said first flange, whereupon substantial movement of said first flange toward or away from said mounting member is prevented by virtue of said first flange being disposed between said second finger and said second flange, and a latch on said mounting member and including an abutment spaced longitudinally from said first finger by an amount greater than the distance between said slot and said one end of said first flange, said abutment being movable to a latching position aligned with the transverse space between said second finger and said second flange, whereupon substantial reciprocal movement of said mounting member and said first flange with respect to each other is prevented by virtue of the portion of said first flange between said one end and said slot being disposed between said first finger and said abutment.

2. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said abutment is spring-biased to the latching position thereof, the distance between said abutment and said first finger being only slightly greater than the distance between said slot and said one end of said first flange so that initial insertion of said second finger into said slot causes the rearrnost portion of said abutment to bear against said mounting member, and so that further insertion causes said abutment to be deflected toward said first flange and out of alignment with the space between said second finger and said second flange, thereby to accommodate subsequent reciprocal movement of said first flange along said mounting member until said abutment snaps back to said latching position. i

3. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said latch includes a shoulder on the forwardmost end of said abutment and is disposed forwardly of said second finger and in transverse alignment therewith, whereby rearward movement of said abutment is limited by engagement of said shoulder with said second finger.

4. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said latch is formed of a metal strip bent to form said shoulder and abutment.

5. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said first flange has a further slot therein longitudinally spaced from said firstmentioned slot, and said mounting member having a rearwardly directed third finger spaced longitudinally from said first finger and a fourth finger on the rear of said third finger and directed substantially normal thereto and in substantial longitudinal alignment with said second finger, the transverse distance between said second flange and said fourth finger being slightly greater than the thickness of said first flange, said fourth finger having a length slightly less than the length of said further slot so as to be insertable therein and movable toward said one end of said first flange.

6. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said first flange is integral and said first finger is a continuation of said second flange and said second finger is a continuation of said first finger.

7. An assembly for mounting a reflector in front of a lighting fixture and comprising a first flange being adapted for attachment adjacent to the lighting fixture, said first flange having a first slot in one side thereof and near one end thereof and a second slot in the other side thereof near said one end, a mounting member for attachment to the reflector on the rear surface thereof and including second and third laterally spaced apart rearwardly directed flanges and rearwardly directed first and second fingers respectively longitudinally aligned with said flanges, and third and fourth fingers respectively at the rear of said first and second fingers and directed substantially normal thereto, the transverse distance between each of said second and third flanges and the associated one of said second fingers being slightly greater than the thickness of said first flange, said third finger having a length slightly less than the length of said second slot so as to be insertable therein and movable toward said one end of said first flange when said mounting member is to be disposed on said one side of said first flange, said fourth finger having a length slightly less than the length of said first slot so as to be insertable therein and movable toward said one end of said first flange when said mounting member is to be disposed on said other side of said first flange, whereupon substantial movement of said first flange toward or away from said mounting member is prevented by virtue of said first flange being disposed between the selected one of said third and fourth fingers and the associated second flange, and a latch on said mounting member and including an abutment spaced longitudinally from said ,first fingers by an amount greater than the distance between said slots and said one end of said first flange, said abutment being movable to a latching position aligned with the transverse space between the selected one of said third and fourth fingers and the associated second flanges, whereupon substantial reciprocal movement of said mounting member and said first flange with respect to each other is prevented by virtue of the portion of said first flange between said one end and the selected one of said slots being disposed between the selected one of said first and second fingers and said abutment. 

1. An assembly for mounting a reflector in front of a lighting fixture and comprising a first flange being adapted for attachment adjacent to the lighting fixture, said first flange having near one end thereof a slot, a mounting member for attachment to the reflector on the rear surface thereof and including a rearwardly directed second flange and a rearwardly directed first finger and a second finger on the rear of said first finger and directed substantially normal thereto, the transverse distance between said second flange and said second finger being slightly greater than the thickness of said first flange, said second finger having a length slightly less than the length of said slot so as to be insertable therein and then movable toward said one end of said first flange, whereupon substantial movement of said first flange toward or away from said mounting member is prevented by virtue of said first flange being disposed between said second finger and said second flange, and a latch on said mounting member and including an abutment spaced longitudinally from said first finger by an amount greater than the distance between said slot and said one end of said first flange, said abutment being movable to a latching position alignEd with the transverse space between said second finger and said second flange, whereupon substantial reciprocal movement of said mounting member and said first flange with respect to each other is prevented by virtue of the portion of said first flange between said one end and said slot being disposed between said first finger and said abutment.
 2. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said abutment is spring-biased to the latching position thereof, the distance between said abutment and said first finger being only slightly greater than the distance between said slot and said one end of said first flange so that initial insertion of said second finger into said slot causes the rearmost portion of said abutment to bear against said mounting member, and so that further insertion causes said abutment to be deflected toward said first flange and out of alignment with the space between said second finger and said second flange, thereby to accommodate subsequent reciprocal movement of said first flange along said mounting member until said abutment snaps back to said latching position.
 3. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said latch includes a shoulder on the forwardmost end of said abutment and is disposed forwardly of said second finger and in transverse alignment therewith, whereby rearward movement of said abutment is limited by engagement of said shoulder with said second finger.
 4. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said latch is formed of a metal strip bent to form said shoulder and abutment.
 5. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said first flange has a further slot therein longitudinally spaced from said first-mentioned slot, and said mounting member having a rearwardly directed third finger spaced longitudinally from said first finger and a fourth finger on the rear of said third finger and directed substantially normal thereto and in substantial longitudinal alignment with said second finger, the transverse distance between said second flange and said fourth finger being slightly greater than the thickness of said first flange, said fourth finger having a length slightly less than the length of said further slot so as to be insertable therein and movable toward said one end of said first flange.
 6. The assembly set forth in claim 1, wherein said first flange is integral and said first finger is a continuation of said second flange and said second finger is a continuation of said first finger.
 7. An assembly for mounting a reflector in front of a lighting fixture and comprising a first flange being adapted for attachment adjacent to the lighting fixture, said first flange having a first slot in one side thereof and near one end thereof and a second slot in the other side thereof near said one end, a mounting member for attachment to the reflector on the rear surface thereof and including second and third laterally spaced apart rearwardly directed flanges and rearwardly directed first and second fingers respectively longitudinally aligned with said flanges, and third and fourth fingers respectively at the rear of said first and second fingers and directed substantially normal thereto, the transverse distance between each of said second and third flanges and the associated one of said second fingers being slightly greater than the thickness of said first flange, said third finger having a length slightly less than the length of said second slot so as to be insertable therein and movable toward said one end of said first flange when said mounting member is to be disposed on said one side of said first flange, said fourth finger having a length slightly less than the length of said first slot so as to be insertable therein and movable toward said one end of said first flange when said mounting member is to be disposed on said other side of said first flange, whereupon substantial movement of said first flange toward or away from said mounting member is prevented by virtue of said first flange being disposed between the selecteD one of said third and fourth fingers and the associated second flange, and a latch on said mounting member and including an abutment spaced longitudinally from said first fingers by an amount greater than the distance between said slots and said one end of said first flange, said abutment being movable to a latching position aligned with the transverse space between the selected one of said third and fourth fingers and the associated second flanges, whereupon substantial reciprocal movement of said mounting member and said first flange with respect to each other is prevented by virtue of the portion of said first flange between said one end and the selected one of said slots being disposed between the selected one of said first and second fingers and said abutment. 